Daily Yellowstone journal., 1887-08-09
THE LOVE OF MONEY
- THE SURE FOUNDATION ON
WHICH THE SHARPER BUILDS.

~ Confessions Of n Fakir-The Sale Of
Consumption C~ures-rhree Card Monte.
How the Counterfeit Money Dodge Is
worked.
ssThe foundation ON which every sharper
works il avarice," said the same fakir
sitter lighting a fresh cigar, land he is as
apt TO catch the citizen OF a big town as
the farmer living by himself. ! was at
tnched 30 a circus for several seasons, and
my statistics proved that the biggest share
u my money came from townspeople. I
lad Q wheel Of fortune, two or three pat
ent medicines, a prize drawing, etc, and
have taken more money at once out of q
lawyer or merchant than out Of q
tryman. 1t is curious how all sorts of
people will invest their money on a wheel
Of fortune. There never was one made
which did not give the operator seventy
I've per cent. advantage TO begin with,
and by trickery this advantage is increased
fifteen or twenty per cent You must
know that the operator has things so liked
that he can stop the wheel at will. In q
town in Rhode Island a member of the
common council who wa accounted q
the sharpest men in the locality left $500
with me before he quit my wheel III
there In any rafting or dice shaking 1t is
al fixed, of course. In the prize drawings
you may find gold and silver watches and
sums of money displayed, but these can
not by any possibility be drawn.
know several men who have grown
ach and ratfrad from, hucipaco aa tha aa1a
Of liver invigorators and consumption
cures. Both remedies are made Of the
same materials-to wit, water, whisky,
and one or two extracts. In Dayton, Ohio,
Q fakir connected with our show sold l3O
bottles Of liver ~invigorator and 2OS bottles
Of consumption cure In four hours, and
n o over one quarter of the lot was sold to
farmers. When you appeal to a mans
avarice you hit him hard; when you get
him to thinking his liver is out of order,
or that he is consumptive, you a take
his last cent. You have seen the glass
bulbs filled with reddish fluid which fakirs
claim to test the blood with Any one Of
average sense must know they are frauds,
but l have seen the best physicians in O
town pay their ten cents with the rest.
About the only thing connected with the
outside Of q circus which is not q fraud on
che public is the electric battery. That g
al right, and the owner will give you all
your money calls for, and sometimes more.
THREE CARD MONTE.
'Now take the three-card monte bust
ness or thimble rigging. Those two games
have been worked for the last fifty years
al over the United States, and the public
has been warned against them tens Of
thousands Of times. They are still the
most profitable games to be worked. Even
old gamblers are enticed to bet. Several
years ago, while I was taking a vacation
at a health resort in Wisconsin, q couple
Of the fraternity called for my assistance
70 help work q farmer. The intended
victim was q sharp, keen man, about 80
years old. He had been everywhere and
was up on all lodges. He had been tried
with the gold brick and treasure lodges,
but had refused to bite. We held a coun-
Gil and decided upon a plan. He had
three or four fine horses for sale, and the
trio OF us drove out to his place to make a
purchase. We were Illinois stock raisers
and horsemen, and 1t was apparent that
he sized us up for sharp fellows. One Of
NY Noiilaitltnc. NUM- \ WI tdii vilis tih
most OF the talking, and he alone desired
70 do the buying. Jack and myself sat
down on an old hay rack in the barnyard,
and scarcely noticed the horses as they
were paraded up and down in front Of US.
A the proper time Jack took out his cards
and began to show me how IL was done.
/ bet him that ] could pick out the card,
and we began to talk In loud tones and at.
tract attention.
''The farmer finally came over. He knew
all about the game and smiled in pity al
the idea Of being caught, but in less than
ten minutes, and that without any urging
from any of US, he had bet and won SO.
That was the entering wedge. He was
allowed TO win $50, and then cleaned out
of Gao. His spirit Of avarice was now
thoroughly aroused, and I'm telling you
the solemn truth when / say that he put
mp the horses and walked into the house
and brought out a bag containing 5000 In
gold. He sat down with greedy eyes and
pale lips, and won and lost until we had
his last dollar. There was no explosion
when he had parted with his last gold
piece. On the contrary, he volunteered
the statement that all had been fair and
above board. An afterclap always accom-.
panies such events, however, and WI go'
out Of the state Just as he had secured
warrants for u arrest.
''The safest game worked in the country
to-day is the counterfeit money dodge, ant
agoodly number Of fakirs are rolling NJ
fortunes by it. 1 supply myself with
lot Of new greenbacks-ones, twos ant
1ves-and then appear in some small tow
a. an agent, or detective, or a stranger
seeking recreation. IL requires only a few
days 70 size up the people. In every towr
OF 5000 inhabitants there are half a dozen
men who are ready to deal in the queer II
IL can be done safely. The money l have
with me is, you understand, perfectly
good. When ! have selected my man ]
exhibit the money as counterfeit. I am
quietly supplying the stuff 10 a few good
fellows at so much on the dollar. Before
he buys | give him q bill to take 10 the
post Office or bank. Il passes without
question and he is elated. I am ready q
leave a dollar bill with him as a sample,
but IL he gives me an order TO be filled
two weeks later he must pay me a certain
sum In advance, say $40 on the hundred.
To prove 20 him that ! have his interests
and safety at heart, l produce a paper in
which he makes me his financial agent "a
receive and receipt for all moneys. Their
! give him my note Of hand, due soms
weeks ahead, for whatever money he pays
me, and he rests assured that the law can
not trouble him. His order is never filed
Of course.
"suppose he kicks. He has given mn
power Of attorney. I have not had a dol
lar Of the queer in my possession. Tn
document is an effectual bar 20 his recov
e1fng or prosecuting. / have seen two O
three tests Of IL, and the fakir came GU
with flying colorsI in each instance In